First off, I would like to pass my condolences to the entire hockey world on the passing of one of the game's true legends on and off the ice. I never saw Jean Beliveau play, but his legend transcends generations and simply the way he carried himself throughout his life personified poise, class and dignity like almost no other human being, let alone athlete. RIP Jean Beliveau.


Now, on to the game on the Island...

It was a point, and that is about it. Aesthetically it certainly wasn't a game that was pleasing to the eyes, but a late goal by Clarke MacArthur forced overtime and salvaged a point for the Ottawa Senators against what has become one of the top clubs in the Eastern Conference, the New York Islanders.

Mike Hoffman got the Senators on the board first, using his patented quick release shot to beat Jaroslav Halak from about 50 feet away. Tables turned late in the second as Brock Nelson jumped on a turnover and went in alone to beat Craig Anderson to tie the game at 1. It could have been worse, as Anderson allowed a last second shot get past him and into the net, but the clock had just clicked to 0.0 a split second before it crossed the line, so the Senators remained tied through 40 minutes.

Ryan Strome did put the Isles up just over a minute into the third, tapping in Thomas Hickey's shot that got through Anderson's legs from the side of the net and rolled along the goal line before Strome cued it home.

MacArthur tied it up with just under 9 minutes left, and in a game that didn't feature a ton of scoring chances, neither team really opened up in search of a regulation completion of the game. Hickey's overtime wraparound went in off the skate of Cody Ceci, who was tied up with Mikhail Grabovski at the opposite side of the crease to end the game.

Here are some random thoughts on the game.

* The Senators held the Islanders, who averaged 33 shots per game coming in, to just 28 shots in 65 minutes (24 through 60).

* It was just the second time this season that Anderson has faced less than 30 shots, and he now has an 0-1-1 record in those games. When facing 30 or more, his record is 5-4-3. Anderson made some great saves early on off the sticks of Strome and Casey Cizikas, but the goals that did go in late were relatively weak. In close he has struggled, and the one leg up, one leg down style he has employed leaves too much room 5-hole which is how Hickey's weak shot got through on Strome's go-ahead goal. There was not much he could do on Nelson's breakaway, but didn't cover the lower part of the net on the OT winner, which although it went in off of Ceci's skate, wasn't moving too fast and was stoppable with a good push across.

* The Senators didn't get much offensive push for much of the game, being held under 20 shots and not enough scoring opportunities. Eight of the 18 shots that actually hit the net were recorded by defensemen, 3 each from Ceci and Erik Karlsson.

*It certainly wasn't the prettiest game, with both teams not exactly putting their "A" game on the ice. With injuries keeping some big names out of the lineup (Methot, Ryan, Boychuck, Visnovsky) both teams looked like they were trying not to lose instead of trying to win.

* Is it just me or is Erik Karlsson looking very tired already? He just doesn't have the burst that he usually does, and it is getting himself and the team in trouble at times. He played over 28 and a half minutes, and in a game where the Senators had a total of 31 seconds of power play time, that is too much time at even strength. I know the announcers said during the game that MacLean thinks he could play 40 minutes a night, but that is hyperbole. If Karlsson was scaled back to playing 20 minutes at even strength and then playing 4-5 minutes on average on the power play, you would get more from him in the long run.

*I know that is a tough call to try to reign in your best player considering the other blueline talent, but that is why I would dress a 7th defenseman. At least until Methot is healthy enough to play his 20-25 minutes alongside Karlsson. Borowiecki did a decent job playing with Karlsson for most of the night, but 21 minutes against the opposition's best players is simply too much for him at this point in time. And Chris Phillips isn't a 24 minute player any more, and some would argue he hasn't been for some time. Dress Wiercioch and reduce the minutes of Phillips, Karlsson and Borowiecki by about 5 each and deploy them more situationally. There are lots of forwards that you could look at and sit down for a couple of games and not miss a beat.

* The Senators come home to face the Islanders again in the back half of the home-and-home, and there is some sort of special evening planned of some sort for Thursday night. A homecoming of some sort or something.

* The Senators wrapped up their 5 game road trip managing to bring home just 3 points, and although it was a tough trip it has to be a huge disappointment. They were out-played at times drastically, but they also were in a number of the games and left a lot of potential points on the table, points that they will not be able to get back later on. And the next 5 games aren't any easier, with the Islanders, Penguins, Kings, Canucks and Bruins on the menu.

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